The Golden Age of Basketball

Kossie's "Prince" is one of Petrović's nicknames.

When he first arrived at the Trail Blazers in the 90s season, he received this nickname because of his handsome appearance.

But this title has a deeper meaning. At that time, Petrović was young and ambitious, determined to surpass Ah Gan.

Until this season, Petrović was still ambitious, even "imagining" becoming the regular season MVP.

Because Ah Gan is Portland's undisputed King and Oregon Emperor, Petrović, who wanted to take his place, became the Prince.

This nickname had a hint of sarcasm. When Petrović first came to Portland, his relationship with other black players was average; he seemed too aloof.

This season, at the start, he performed exceptionally well, but as Trail Blazers' injured players returned and Petrović injured his knee, his performance dropped.

Nonetheless, by the end of the season, Petrović was still included in the All-NBA Third Team lineup, successfully fulfilling his promise.

Over the years, everyone has seen Petrović's effort and persistence in basketball. In the playoffs, he played through the finals with a torn cruciate ligament, making significant contributions in every game. The Trail Blazers veterans have long changed their views on him.

The title "Prince" is no longer sarcastic but a praise for him.

In some games, his decisive plays are no less than Ah Gan's; he is the second most trustworthy person on the team during critical moments.

Especially in this playoff, with Terry Porter affected by a calf injury and in poor form, Petrović was the top offensive threat on the team's perimeter.

Porter agreed with what Kossie said. He looked back at Petrović, sitting in the back, accompanied by Sabonis.

Petrović had a specialized device strapped on his knee, buzzing, helping the cruciate ligament recover.

Since the start of the playoffs, besides matches, training, and walking, Petrović wore this thing everywhere, even while sleeping, to keep the partially torn cruciate ligament stable to support playing the remaining games.

He was somewhat fatigued. When the plane accelerated, glided, and soared into the sky, he felt a faint pain in his knee, closed his eyes, furrowed his brow, trying hard to fall asleep.

In the few days after the Western Conference finals ended, besides watching TV and going out for training, Petrović spent the rest of his time working out, doing aerobic exercises to maintain his condition.

The situation in Croatia had stabilized. His parents and siblings were doing well in America, yet they still yearned for life in their homeland.

The new country had been established, and they couldn't wait to return to Croatia to contribute to the growth of the new nation, leaving Petrović alone in Portland.

For his fourth finals, family didn't come to America to watch the games. After all, it was the fourth consecutive time, anyone would feel tired and burdened; flying from Croatia to Portland takes 20 hours.

However, this year he started dating a new girlfriend, Clara Shalanqi, a German female basketball player and model.

She was a loyal fan of Petrović, who through a Croatian friend managed to contact Petrović's agent, and after finding a way to meet him, they started a romantic relationship.

For several months, the two have been together. Their feelings aren't very deep, yet at least Petrović wouldn't feel too lonely away from basketball.

Petrović was thinking about Shalanqi's appearance but surprisingly found it hard to recall. Despite spending lots of time together in recent months, being so close to each other, her appearance still seemed as blurry as seeing flowers through a fog.

Sleepiness and fatigue gradually faded away; the buzzing sound of the treatment device on his knee became clearer. He opened his eyes and took out his wallet, which had a picture of Shalanqi.

"What's this? Missing your girlfriend?" Sabonis, reading a newspaper nearby, asked.

After Divac was traded to the Celtics, Petrović and Sabonis became the remaining members of the Eastern European trio.

They became closer, especially after Lithuania and Croatia attained independence; the two grew tighter, often sitting together.

"No, I... I was a bit sleepy and wanted to nap, but somehow I'm suddenly not tired anymore." Petrović put his wallet away.

"It's not even late, and you're feeling tired already? It's 4 PM, are you using European time?" Sabonis checked his watch; it was afternoon.

"I want to get some more sleep to stay energetic. Look at the team leader; as soon as he gets on the plane, he falls asleep."

Petrović pointed at Gan Guoyang, who was sitting in the first-row solo seat. Within five minutes of boarding, his chest's steady natural rise and fall indicated he was sound asleep.

This was a unique skill of Gan Guoyang's; in any place at any time, he could fall asleep briefly for a bit to recharge energy and then eat heartily afterward, becoming vibrant instantly.

"Sonny's a robot, you know. He's got a switch to shut down, rest, and recharge anytime, anywhere. Don't try to learn that; it's impossible."

Petrović couldn't sleep at all, so he started chatting with Sabonis. Having reached the finals for the fourth consecutive time, they were calm.

Even if their hearts were still burning with intense flames, they could already control it, releasing it during games while remaining calm as water off the court.

The two chatted about some future plans. Petrović mentioned that maybe one day he would return to Europe to play, possibly in the coming years.